Liszt and transcriptions – an inexhaustible theme. The great Romantic composer did not infringe copyright laws when he set about recasting a work he admired by a composer he respected. If he sensed it was too light and wished to make it more effective, or colourful – which often happened – he added some extra bars. But he also wrote transcriptions when he wanted to perform something that he could not otherwise do, for example a Schumann or Schubert song, or a Verdi, Wagner, Tchaikovsky or Gounod opera. Particularly exciting are his operatic paraphrases and so-called reminiscences in which Liszt gathered up various scenes, arias, motifs of a fashionable stage work, and then recast them in a genuine act of recreation. In this fascinating concert recital, three young Hungarian pianists now perform a selection of Liszt works. Liszt and transcriptions – an inexhaustible theme. The great Romantic composer did not infringe copyright laws when he set about recasting a work he admired by a composer he respected. If he sensed it was too light and wished to make it more effective, or colourful – which often happened - he added some extra bars. But he also wrote transcriptions when he wanted to perform something that he could not otherwise do, for example a Schumann or Schubert song, or a Verdi, Wagner, Tchaikovsky or Gounod opera. Particularly exciting are his operatic paraphrases and so-called reminiscences in which Liszt gathered up various scenes, arias, motifs of a fashionable stage work, and then recast them in a genuine act of recreation. In this fascinating concert recital, three young Hungarian pianists now perform a selection of Liszt works. József Balog was the winner of the 2000 Liszt-Bartók International Piano Competition and he has recorded Liszt’s sonata in B minor for Dutch Television; he has played at the Lisztomania Festival in France, participated in the great Liszt masterclass of Oxana Yablonskaya, and also won the Franz Liszt Recording Prize of the Franz Liszt Society. Gábor Farkas is two years younger and has developed into a true Liszt specialist; his first Liszt album was published by an international company, and he will also release his account of the two Liszt piano concertos in 2010. Of the three pianists, Bálint Zsoldos is the oldest at the ripe old age of thirty three; he has attended masterclasses by Dmitri Bashkirov, Lazar Berman, Péter Frankl and György Sebők. He has played at the Salzburg Festival, the Santander Summer Festival and the Budapest Spring Festival. In 2003 he won the special prize at the Hungarian Radio Piano Competition; he has played with many Hungarian ensembles, and appeared with the Salzburg Soloists and the Hamburg Philharmonic Orchestra. Many television and radio recordings have been made of his concerts.

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